<start boring blog post here> I don’t have much to say so I am going to write a blog post. (-:
I just sent out a tweet on the same topic:
Not too much going on, finally, thank goodness. We survived the kids’ science fair week (it nearly killed us) – nobody got blown up, evaporated, or lit anyone’s hair on fire.
I procrastinated masterfully but we moved past my masterful dysfunction and I ended up learning a lot. A lot. Especially about Ella and her fierce attachment to the independent part of having a Montessori education. She is only 8 – but she knew what she wanted to do her report on (optical illusions), and she knew from the start she didn’t want any Mommy-intervention during any of it. She did and wrote all of it, including putting together her whole display board (although I was allowed to help with the gluing). I can’t tell you how many times she shoo’d me out of her little 8-year-old path. There is a part of me – a genetic part of me, I suspect – that feels that a mother must insert herself wholly into her child’s projects. That if I don’t, somehow I’m not helping her enough. But the thing is, if that child is a Montessori child, like Ella, they know how to find the information, how to put it together, and how to present it – they do not need their Mommies to do it for them. So…I learned something. I really did.
There is a snowpocalypse starting up in the Northeast – it’s just missing us thankfully. My husband has taken Fi to her violin lesson and I am letting Ella fly her mythie on Jumpstart, while I sit on the rocking chair nearby, blogging on my laptop (terrible parenting but how on Earth can any parent be on all the time, anyway?). What I’m really doing is hiding from our cleaning lady, because I feel sheepish and embarrassed when she is here cleaning – like I should care more or know more or give a flip about mops and floor wax and laundry and stuff. Every time she comes I either hide out or leave the house. This is of course, after cleaning the house in advance of her arrival (I told you we are messy) so she doesn’t think we are as frightfully messy as we really are. I remind myself frequently that if we weren’t so sloppy, she wouldn’t have a job. This makes me feel better. And yes, several times I have apologized to her for us being so messy. The thing is – I appreciate her, I’m glad she’s around to help us, and I will continue to feel sheepish whenever she’s here, and I will never, ever give a flip about cleaning supplies, and I really don’t know why I’m writing about this.
Oh, because I don’t really have much to say.
Before I started this blog post, I was Googling “rescue chihuahuas.” Dangerous, so I had to stop. So anyhoo, you can see where this blog post is going. Our cleaning lady has just left so I am going to go upstairs and cook dinner now. <end boring blog post here>
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This made me sincerely laugh out loud.
My parents insisted we do our science fair projects, etc. primarily on our own because we needed to be self sufficient. I built a solar water heater one year (7th grade) and my parents helped with things that I really couldn’t do alone. My dad helped me by cutting the wood and plexiglass on his table-saw, but I had to put the pieces together. My mom would collect temperature data while I was at school. I also gave my parents credit for these things in my write up. The other kids didn’t credit their parents. First place didn’t credit her parents, but that’s ok I got second place and I did the right thing. I went to catholic school and we were pretty independent (I still am) which leads to the housekeeper thing.
I feel the same about the housekeeper. I clean before she comes and feel like I should be helping her the entire time she is at the house. I have to leave because I can’t handle it. This is made worse by the fact that my husband’s former housekeeper (and this is partly why she is former) would make comments just loud enough for me to catch the idea of what she was saying about some of the messes in our house. My husband has ADHD and I cannot keep up with his mess making. He is like a tornado. Between his messes and our now almost three year old, I feel like I am hanging in by the tips of my fingers with the cleaning. I thought, “He pays you – a lot, a LOT to come help us out!” The new housekeeper is completely different, but I still feel like I have failed somehow because I can’t do it all.
Sorry for the lengthy comment. I just wanted you to know that you are not alone. Have a good day!
Tonja, first of all I love lengthy comments, are you KIDDING? Love them.
But…a solar water heater *in the 7th grade* mostly by yourself? Wow. That’s some independence!! (-:
You just confused the hell out of me with this post title, since I have a friend in my blogroll whose blog is CALLED Insert Witty Title Here.
Our cleaning lady comes once every two weeks and I feel sheepish when she’s here too. This week I was hiding in my room reading and when I came out she said she hoped she didn’t WAKE me. She thinks I nap in the middle of the day! AGH!
Twitter: bitterindigo
OH MY GOD, NOOOOO! That’s horrible! She thinks you NAP! What are you ever going to do to convince her otherwise??? Maybe you SHOULD nap now, in the afternoons??? This is a big, big dilemma! (-:
I totally tidy up for the cleaning crew every Friday morning. No shame in it.
Twitter: AlisonSWLee
But somehow I think you tidy up daily anyhow, am I right? I imagine your home all clean and modern and tidy.
I understand – I want merry maids to come – I had spine surgery on my neck. I don’t want anyone to see my cob webs or my bathrooms or my laundry, I want to make it better first, (to which my boyfriend laughs, and no I dont want his help). As far as the kids school projects, my feelings would be hurt if nobody wanted my help. I love getting a A too. Soo I think your having a blah day, nothing feels right but nothing feels wrong??? I am jealous of the cleaning lady – for reals.
It took me a long, long time to allow myself to get a cleaning lady (and to be able to afford the help, too) especially since I’m a SAHM. But it is the best $ we ever spent, it has really, really helped us all – each time she leaves the house it feels blessed (and I’m not super religious, either!).
Yes my feelings do feel a little bent out of shape when my kids shoo me away like that! (-:
I just realized I have no idea what a mythie is or jumpstart and my children are right around the same age as yours! Maybe it hasn’t caught on over here in Calif yet? It’s all about Minecraft, here. Going to google.
Well we’re even then because I’m not quite sure what Minecraft is either. Jumpstart is actually great – it’s a learning tool – check it out – but it is fun. I don’t let my child “friend” people – she just plays on it alone. I don’t like the idea of “online predators” being out there if she “friends” people but that’s just me – I do know parents who let their kids friend people on it and it’s fine. Anyway we love it!
Haha, I know what you mean with hiding from the cleaning lady. Normally I do the cleaning part on my own (sometimes I just don’t think its clean enough when I am not the one to clean it, you know what I mean?) but when I have a big translating project or a short deadline I call the lady up and beg her to come (we are messy, too!). Then I am ashamed I should decide if I want her to come regularly or not come at all and I guess it bothers me a bit too much so I hide…Yep. I am a grown person in case anyone wondered!
Twitter: auntiejanola